At Julian & Varue Foundation, we understand that effective philanthropy requires more than good intentions—it demands strategic thinking, rigorous analysis, and deep expertise. Our comprehensive consulting services are designed to help donors, foundations, and charitable organizations maximize their social impact while staying true to their core values and mission.
Whether you're establishing a new foundation, refining your grantmaking strategy, or seeking to measure and amplify your impact, our experienced advisors provide the guidance and tools you need to create meaningful, lasting change in the communities and causes you care about most.
Strategic Philanthropic Planning
Develop a comprehensive giving strategy that aligns your resources with your values and creates measurable impact
Mission and Vision Development
Every successful philanthropic endeavor begins with clarity of purpose. Our consultants work closely with you to articulate your philanthropic mission, define your vision for change, and establish core values that will guide all future giving decisions. Through facilitated workshops and strategic discussions, we help you identify the causes and communities that matter most to you.
We explore your personal or organizational history, values, and aspirations to create a compelling philanthropic narrative that resonates with stakeholders and provides clear direction for your grantmaking activities. This foundational work ensures that every dollar you invest in social change reflects your authentic commitment to making a difference.
Theory of Change Framework
Understanding how change happens is essential to effective philanthropy. We help you develop a robust theory of change that maps the pathway from your investments to desired outcomes. This framework identifies the specific activities, outputs, and outcomes that will lead to your ultimate impact goals.
Our consultants bring expertise in logic models, systems thinking, and evidence-based practices to ensure your theory of change is both ambitious and achievable. We help you identify key assumptions, potential barriers, and critical success factors that will inform your grantmaking strategy and evaluation approach.
Multi-Year Strategic Plans
Sustainable impact requires long-term commitment and strategic planning. We work with you to develop comprehensive three to five-year strategic plans that outline your philanthropic priorities, resource allocation, and expected outcomes. These plans provide a roadmap for your giving while maintaining flexibility to respond to emerging opportunities and challenges.
Our strategic planning process includes environmental scanning, stakeholder engagement, goal setting, and implementation planning. We help you establish clear milestones, accountability mechanisms, and review processes to ensure your philanthropic strategy remains relevant and effective over time.
Grantmaking Excellence and Due Diligence
Identify high-impact opportunities and implement rigorous processes to ensure your grants achieve maximum effectiveness
Opportunity Identification
We conduct comprehensive landscape analyses to identify organizations and initiatives that align with your philanthropic priorities. Our research includes reviewing nonprofit performance data, assessing community needs, and evaluating emerging solutions to social challenges.
Rigorous Due Diligence
Our due diligence process examines organizational capacity, financial health, program effectiveness, and leadership quality. We review IRS filings, audited financials, program evaluations, and conduct site visits to ensure potential grantees meet your standards for excellence and accountability.
Grant Agreement Design
We help you structure grant agreements that clearly define expectations, deliverables, and reporting requirements while fostering collaborative partnerships. Our approach balances accountability with flexibility, ensuring grantees have the support and autonomy they need to succeed.
Our grantmaking services extend beyond initial funding decisions. We help you establish systems for ongoing grantee support, performance monitoring, and adaptive management. This includes developing reporting templates, conducting site visits, facilitating peer learning among grantees, and providing technical assistance when needed.
We also assist with portfolio management, helping you maintain a balanced mix of grants across issue areas, geographic regions, and funding types. Our consultants can help you determine the optimal allocation between general operating support, project-specific grants, capacity building investments, and multi-year commitments.
Impact Measurement and Evaluation
Demonstrate the value of your philanthropy through rigorous evaluation and compelling impact reporting
Evaluation Framework Development
Measuring philanthropic impact requires thoughtful planning and appropriate methodologies. We help you design evaluation frameworks that capture both quantitative outcomes and qualitative changes resulting from your investments. Our approach includes identifying key performance indicators, establishing baseline data, and determining appropriate measurement tools.
We work with you to balance the need for accountability with the realities of social change work, which often involves long time horizons and complex causal pathways. Our evaluation frameworks are designed to be practical, cost-effective, and genuinely useful for learning and improvement.
"Effective evaluation isn't about proving success—it's about improving practice and deepening understanding of what works, for whom, and under what conditions."
Data Collection and Analysis
Our team provides expertise in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. We can design surveys, conduct interviews and focus groups, analyze administrative data, and synthesize findings from multiple sources. We help you make sense of complex data and translate it into actionable insights.
We also assist with technology selection and implementation for data management, helping you choose and deploy systems that streamline data collection, storage, and reporting while protecting privacy and ensuring data quality.
Impact Reporting and Communication
Communicating your impact effectively is essential for stakeholder engagement and organizational learning. We help you develop compelling impact reports that tell the story of your philanthropy through data visualization, case studies, and narrative storytelling.
Our reporting services include annual impact reports, donor communications, board presentations, and public-facing materials. We ensure your impact story is accessible, credible, and inspiring to diverse audiences.
Foundation Operations and Governance
Build strong operational foundations and governance structures that support effective philanthropy
Governance Structure Design
Strong governance is the foundation of effective philanthropy. We help you design board structures, develop bylaws, and establish policies that ensure accountability, transparency, and strategic oversight. Our consultants bring expertise in nonprofit governance best practices and can help you navigate complex family dynamics in family foundations.
We assist with board recruitment, orientation, and development, helping you build a diverse, engaged board that brings the skills and perspectives needed to advance your mission. We also facilitate board retreats and strategic planning sessions to strengthen board effectiveness.
Operational Systems and Processes
Efficient operations free up resources for mission-focused work. We help you establish streamlined processes for grant application review, financial management, compliance reporting, and stakeholder communications. Our operational consulting includes technology assessment and implementation support.
We can help you develop operations manuals, create workflow diagrams, and implement project management systems that enhance efficiency and effectiveness. Our goal is to help you build operational capacity that scales with your philanthropic ambitions.
Legal and Compliance
Navigate complex regulatory requirements with confidence. We provide guidance on IRS regulations, state filing requirements, and best practices for maintaining tax-exempt status. Our consultants help you understand expenditure responsibility, private benefit rules, and other compliance considerations.
Financial Management
Develop sound financial management practices including budgeting, investment policy development, and payout strategy. We help you balance current giving with long-term sustainability, considering factors like market conditions, spending rules, and intergenerational equity.
Succession Planning
Ensure continuity of your philanthropic legacy through thoughtful succession planning. We help families and foundations plan for leadership transitions, engage next-generation philanthropists, and preserve institutional knowledge while allowing for evolution and innovation.
Specialized Consulting Services
Tailored expertise for unique philanthropic challenges and opportunities
Collaborative Philanthropy
Many of today's most pressing challenges require collective action. We help you identify opportunities for collaborative funding, design pooled funds and giving circles, and navigate the complexities of multi-funder initiatives. Our consultants bring experience in facilitating funder collaboratives and can help you build productive partnerships with other philanthropists.
We assist with developing shared agendas, aligning funding strategies, and establishing governance structures for collaborative efforts. We also help you assess when collaboration makes sense and when independent action may be more effective.
Impact Investing Integration
Increasingly, philanthropists are using their full asset base to advance their missions. We provide guidance on integrating impact investing into your philanthropic strategy, including program-related investments, mission-related investments, and environmental, social, and governance considerations in endowment management.
Our consultants help you understand the spectrum of impact investing opportunities, assess risk and return expectations, and develop investment policies that align your financial assets with your philanthropic values.
International Grantmaking
Cross-border philanthropy presents unique opportunities and challenges. We provide expertise in international grantmaking compliance, including equivalency determinations, expenditure responsibility, and anti-terrorism screening. We help you understand local contexts, identify credible partners, and structure grants that comply with both U.S. and foreign regulations.
Our international consulting services include country and sector research, partner vetting, and support for establishing international giving programs that are culturally appropriate and locally responsive.
Equity and Inclusion Consulting
Advancing equity requires intentional strategy and ongoing commitment. We help foundations examine their practices through an equity lens, from board composition and staff diversity to grantmaking processes and power dynamics with grantees. Our consultants facilitate difficult conversations and help you develop concrete action plans for advancing equity.
We provide training on topics including implicit bias, structural racism, and inclusive grantmaking practices. We also help you develop equity metrics and accountability mechanisms to track progress over time.
Partner with Us for Greater Impact
At Julian & Varue Foundation, we believe that strategic philanthropy can transform communities and create lasting change. Our comprehensive consulting services are designed to help you navigate the complexities of effective giving, from initial strategy development through impact measurement and continuous improvement.
Whether you're just beginning your philanthropic journey or looking to enhance an established foundation's effectiveness, our experienced advisors bring the expertise, tools, and insights you need to maximize your social impact. We work collaboratively with you to develop customized solutions that honor your values, leverage your resources, and create meaningful change in the world.
Every philanthropic dollar represents an opportunity to make a difference. Let us help you ensure that your giving achieves its full potential, creating lasting impact for the causes and communities you care about most. Together, we can build a more just, equitable, and thriving world through strategic, values-aligned philanthropy.
Ready to Amplify Your Philanthropic Impact?
Our team of philanthropic advisors is ready to help you develop strategies that align your values with measurable outcomes. Contact us today to schedule a consultation and discover how our comprehensive services can help you create lasting change through strategic, effective philanthropy.